30.06.22 30 Days Wild #30 Multiple simple, short moments carry a large clout

O’n i wedi bwriadu neud rhywbeth amlwg heddi – ond wedi dal rhyw fath o anwyd neu rywbeth, felly digon o ymlacio a gorffwys fel uchafbwynt i’r mis. Ac mae hynny’n iawn hefyd. Mae cynifer o bethau bach wedi cyfrannu i’r mis eleni. Digwyddiadau eilradd. Eiliadau annisgwyl. Darganfyddiadau diddorol. Fel cyfanwaith, mae wedi bod yn fis cofiadwy iawn.

As a teenager, I loved the little collection of ‘The Observer’s book of . . . ‘ that we had in the house. I still have my favourites (and it seems I added whisky to the collection a few years later)

As a teenager, I always imagined that I would be a wise and curious old man and that keeping all the books would give me the time and opportunity to read them all like a man locked in the library on a Friday evening and discovered on the Monday morning with a manic demeanour and unrecognisable smile.

I still have the books, but I’m not the person I imagined I would be. I’m possibly better in some ways – and recklessly underachieving in other ways.

And the plans for today have to be re-adjusted as I succumb to a serious and crippling man-flu.

My plans for a celebratory little walk have been shelved and the garden has once again become the Wild inspiration for Day 30.

It’s been a good month. Thought-provoking and probably fully-recognising the impact of change that’s happening in our world and how that is filtering down to each and every one of us.

But, the star of the month has once again been Mr & Mrs Robin.

They forced their way onto the set at the beginning of the production and have been there every day of the 30.

The fledgling chicks are still being fed in our garden, but not all of them made it. One remained in the nest to be organically broken down with the moss and leaves that gave it a short-stay nursery.

It’s been a cold and windy week. Perhaps too much of a strain for the parents – and Mrs Robin has not been seen for a couple of days.

The intensity of the urge to survive has been phenomenal in its sharing. It’s an intrinsic element for all wildlife of course, but the robins brought their house and story into ours and made us a part of the journey. We were complicit in their survival by preserving the nest and ensuring regular grocery home deliveries.

The garden has been full of juveniles this week. Starling, jackdaw, house sparrows, hedge sparrows, gulls, blue tit and robin.

I’m guessing by tomorrow, there will be another couple of residents checking out of their rooms and finding their independence.

The couple of minutes I spent watching this interaction is typical of everything about this past month. Each and every one of those minutes were new, invigorating, confirming and precious.

Here’s to next year and everything in between.

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29.06.22 30 Days Wild #29 A flower gifted with pride.

Mi fydd yfory’n cynnig diweddglo ar 30 Diwrnod Gwyllt am eleni. Bydd rhaid i fi chwilio am ‘uchafbwynt’ i goroni’r cyfan. Neu falle cyfres o uchafbwyntiau.

In preparation for the culmination of 30 Days Wild tomorrow, today was a chance to reflect with a gift I received from Elen for my birthday. It’s been here for a fortnight, but it’s lasting well!

Slightly modified it may be, but it fills me with the intended pride.

I’m very proud of Elen and Heini and all that they’ve achieved.

My regret is that the world that they inherit isn’t in a healthier state. That’s the fault of my generation, and I never anticipated that to be the case even 25 years ago. It brings a guilt and a sadness that I feel deeply, and should be felt by everyone. Our planet should be the core principle of every movement, every protest, every government, every campaign and every mission statement. Without it, nothing else matters. Nothing at all.

I know that the next generation are more aware. I trust that awareness will lead to change.

But, perhaps it’s even the generation after Elen and Heini and the generation after that.

I’m so sorry that we’ve left you so much to do.

28.06.22 30 Days Wild #28 Are spectacles the best invention ever?

Whilst passing the lettuce in the garden, I thought I saw a ladybird. So I took a picture in case was useful for today’s entry. Who wouldn’t want to read something interesting about the appealing and wonderful ladybird, right?

Dyma’r cyfnodau pan dwi’n gwerthfawrogi sbectol am y cyfoeth a’r cywirdeb ma nhw’n cynnig yn ddyddiol.

So, with the clarity of reading glasses and a computer screen, I realise that this is no ladybird. And I don’t know what it is. What do we have in our garden? In our salad?

A larva, a small slug with piles, a germinating seed?

Any ideas?

Growing chemical-free organic produce is the pathway to one exciting adventure after another.

DIWEDDARIAD / UPDATE!

I’ve been in pursuit of the U.C.O. (Unidentified crawling object) and I think I have an answer. I sealed off the area, dressed in my forensic overalls and undertook a detailed search of the area.

In the vicinity of the U.C.O., I quickly noticed the proximity of Cini Bêns (French Beans) overlooking the scene of the sighting.

An entry warrant was issued for a search of the identified lettuce.

A possible suspect was quickly identified.

All evidence will now be handed over to the optician pending further investigation..

27.06.22 30 Days Wild #27 Is plastic our greatest invention?

I’ve been thinking about neanderthal drinking / eating bowls or vessels today. I guess this is what I had in my head.

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Stone_bowl,_Bronze_Age,_AM_Fira_0503286.jpg

Every single item would be hand crafted after multiple hours and consequently preserved and really cherished. Family heirlooms.

And then I imagine a time traveller telling those wise humans that in the future, there will be this thing called ‘plasteak’ and they would never have to grind stone or carve wood ever again.

In fact, this ‘plastike’ will never, ever rot. It would be so plentiful that you could buy hundreds of bottles in a day and then just throw them away. You can buy as many, and throw as many as you can afford.

And then I imagine Neanderthal human looking the time traveller in the eye and saying, ‘In the future, you will have this incredible invention. An unbelievable invention. But you will then turn it from a wonderful thing into a pollutant? Using them once? Throwing them away? My dear boy (this Neanderthal went to Eton; most of them do), have you lost your mind?’

And the reason I thought of that is because I have a strimmer.

A strimmer is wonderful invention, but why do we have to abuse this gift?

There’s a bank I strim twice a year, but I always cut it a couple of inches above the surface because of slow worms. Today, this slow worm was glad that I did:

And the connection with plastic is that I’m always aware of how much micro-cuttings of plastic I throw into the earth when I’m strimming – and that’s apart from the big sections that I’m constantly ‘plogging’ when I’m out and about.

So this year, I’ve managed to buy some biodegradable nylon – and, guess what, it works.

I’ve had to find an import from America as I couldn’t find any European manufacturer – but, it works.

Why isn’t it mandatory for all strimmer nylon to be biodegradable?

Why is there plastic in ‘flushable’ toilet wipes?

Who thought it would be a good idea to put plastic into tea bags?

Why don’t we charge the multinational distribution companies a levy to recycle all their packaging at the point of source?

Who thought that picking up dog excrement, sealing it in ‘plashit’ and throwing it into the hedgerows would be a good idea?

Why are we screwing everything up for the next generation? To the point of no return.

Why isn’t there a system of governance that has the intelligence to appreciate the significance of these decisions and then act accordingly? Oh, I forgot. Eton.

So basically, today, I’ve been strimming, sweating, saving slow worms and thinking about what a great invention plastic was. And what a horrible misuse and diabolical mess we’ve made of it.

26.06.22 30 Days Wild #26 Tato o’r ardd a ‘Birdsong in a time of silence’

Mae’r bore wedi pasio rhwng cadw llygaid ar gywion y Robin a chasglu cynhaeaf yr ardd.

Supper all sorted. Growing your own potatoes offers a taste that you can’t find from any cold storage supermarket. It also opens up a new world of varieties and flavours. This year was about ‘Home Guard’ and ‘Charlote’. Excellent crop from both.

Ma’ gwyntoedd cryf trofannol eu naws o gwmpas heddi. Felly pnawn o ddarllen sydd ar y gorwel weden i.

Received this lovely present recently. According to his literary agent, “Having been a librarian, cleaner, life model and teacher, Steven Lovatt now works as a writer and editor. He lives in South Wales with his partner and three children.” That’s already a very interesting life if you ask me. It’s also a very engaging book.

I might just open the window for a backing track whilst I’m reading.

25.06.2022 30 Days Wild #25 All about the robin

So, just over 3 weeks ago, I talked about the robin that had decided to re-locate and start afresh in our newly finished potting shed. (No government funding / start-up help required)

02.06.2022 30 Days Wild #2 Robin the potting space

On the first of June, the newly completed nest had 5 eggs.

Today, the fledglings were starting to distribute themselves around the garden.

At least one was still in the nest.

At least one had made a bigger leap into the garden hedging.

And one became an ornament on the shelf.

During the evening, we kept an eye on the chick moving around and continuing with the feeding.

In laying the eggs, the female invested the equivalent of up to 90% of her own body weight.

The initial feeding was all natural insects with nothing from the bird table going to the chicks. Organic, local produce is obviously very much in vogue.

Now that they’re maturing quickly, the adults and mixing the insect menu with some of the suet from the bird table seed mix.

The whole adventure will be completed from start to finish within the 30 Day Wild timeframe. That alone is enough to render me numb with admiration.

UPDATE:

Today (26th June) is very windy and we have a rhubarb patch behind the potting shed.

Look closely. Very closely.

Rhubarb leaves must be like being in the Millennium stadium with the roof closed.

24.06.2002 30 Days Wild #24 Bee a survivor

A double focus for today’s 30 Days Wild

Last night we had a report of an injured herring gull. The wing appeared to be broken at the joint – but also a puncture wound on the chest which could suggest a mobbing by other herring gulls.

We traced it to a neighbour’s garden – but apart from the damaged wing, it was in a pretty energetic and feisty mood. RSPCA had closed 10 minutes earlier. The local wild bird sanctuary was closed. The local vet was closed. As I couldn’t catch it, nature would have to take its course and then we could see if the gull was still around this morning.

Unfortunately, no sign of the gull this morning.

This afternoon, I had a call from Geinor Styles alerting me to a story of survival that seemed the perfect launchpad for the week-end.

A bumble bee not seen in 50 years had ‘re-emerged’ in Brechfa. The Ruderal bumblebee (Bombus ruderatus) has been happily and quietly living in Carmarthenshire during all that time. It took a ‘chance’ walk by some experts who happened to be with another expert (Lawrence Harris – Wales Project Development Officer), having moved to the area at the end of last year.

Image Lawrence Harris Bumblebee conservation Trust

It’s a lovely story from the bumblebee conservation trust.

That’s a good start to the week-end.

23.06.2022 30 Days Wild #23 Bugs Matter update and roses run wild

Es i am drip i Aberystwyth heddi’ am y tro cynta’ mewn o leia’ pedair mlynedd. Atgof o heulwen a’r arfordir ar ei orau. Ni’n byw mewn gwlad hyfryd.

A long journey today (over 120km) and the bugs matter survey finally brought some results.

5 bugs on the number plate. I’m not celebrating the death of 5 bugs, but that’s such a small number for such a long journey. I wonder how the results will fare this year?

As an antidote, a local household garage hasn’t seen a car for a long time. Nature is undertaking its own rewilding scheme.

Nature is an excellent rewilder. Perhaps we should give her a lot more opportunities. She’s good to go anyday of the week. Any time. Any where. Let’s just give her that chance before she has to do it despite and directly because of our actions.

22.06.2022 30 Days Wild #22 A little bird told me this story

On our patio – we have a miniature cherry tree that has just passed its seasonal prime.

The spring bloom was incredible this year. But the photographer forgot to capture the image to share with you all (getting someone better next year).

Since about 10 days ago, a male blackbird has been feasting with relish. So much so, that the tree is now down to its last couple of bright cherries.

Some of the fallen cherries have resorted to trying to re-connecct with the shadow of their previous existence.

This morning a juvenile blackbird came on a desperate search and told me this story.

A long time ago (two weeks in the world of the Mwyalchen), there was a happy home of very contented blackbirds.

It wasn’t long before the youngest blackbird was ready to leave home and find his own path in life. He relished the adventure that lay ahead and left with the energetic passion shared with so many juveniles.

He adored his new world and it was everything he hoped it would be. Apart from one thing. The one thing he had hoped for above everything else. He simply couldn’t find the treasures that his father had told him about.

So, he was forced to return home and await his father’s return.

“How are you son? I didn’t expect to see you so soon”

“I’m good, dad. Really good. I love it here.”

“But . . “

“Ah, there’s always a but”

“No, not always, but, this time, yes, there is”

“Well?”

“I’ve spent a very long time (1 day in the world of the Mwyalchen) searching for those red, sharp, sweet, fruit bombs that you used to bring to us when we were small (5 days in the world of the Mwyalchen). Where can I find them?”

“Come with me and I’ll show you”

They flew the short distance to the free sweet shop, but found that the shelves were bare.

“There’s none left”, said the disappointed juvenile.

“Not to worry”, replied the father.

“What am I to do now?”

“Wait. Patience is a virtue”

“How long for?”

“Until this time next year.”

“Next year?!” (That’s 35,002 days in the world of the Mwyalchen). “Why so long?”

“Because that’s the agreement we have between us. The tree will be re-stocked just when we need it most. When you have young to feed.”

“That sucks. But it makes sense, I guess”.

“Yes, it does”.

“If it’s an agreement, what does the tree get in exchange?”

“Well, in exchange, we shit the seeds far and wide to help the family tree”

“You what?”

“I know. That’s nature for you”

“That’s a really good agreement”.

“Yes, it is, isn’t it.”

21.06.2022 30 Days Wild #21 Sun (sol) stands still (sistere) but the noctule does not

Late last night, I heard the echolocation calls of a noctule bat for the first time.

You can listen to it here with thanks to https://www.bats.org.uk/about-bats/what-are-bats/uk-bats for their excellent resource.

What an amazing feeling. Heini called it the ‘hip-hop artist of the bat world’. I like that.

There are 18 species of bats in the UK, but until today, I’d never listened to them all. The variety is equivalent to that of birdsong. Hyfryd.

So, last night was about this:

The sight and sound of that Ystlum mawr / Nyctalis noctua / Noctule bat made the 2022 solstice one to remember.